Now on bbc news in a special edition of the programme, Stephen Sackur is in scotland for hardtalk 0n the road. Written is a proud island nation. The surrounding seas have always been vital source of food. Britain. But who profits most from the uks offshore riches . Forfour decades, the eu made the key decisions. But then came brexit. Britain and the eu are locking horns over the terms of their future relationship and places like these are on the frontline. There is going to bea are on the frontline. There is going to be a fight over fishing and it could get ugly. Prime minister Boris Johnson says he is taking back control of britains unrivalled marine resources. In france, they respond with talk of seaborne confrontation and economic retaliation. Could fishing sink hopes of post brexit collaboration . Dawn in fraserborough in deep midwinter. Scotlands north east coast looks out on some of the best fishing grounds in the world. Its easy to see why britains fishermen have long felt isolated and ignored. To get to fraserburgh from london involves a journey of 1000 kilometres. You have to be up early to see whats come in on the overnight tide. Its just after seven oclock on a very chilly morning and weve arrived at the fish market. Lets go inside and see what they are selling this morning. 100, 100 this morning, supplies are limited so bidding is sharp, price is high. These fish will be on dinner tables in london in Continental Europe within 2a hours. Number two, number two business Continental Europe within 2a hours. Numbertwo, numbertwo business may be risk but the mood is far from buoyant. The local fishing fleet that supplies this market is halved in size since written joined the eu. Just described to me how this market works. We sell haddock, whiting, cod and what we call rough. After that monks, anything else goes in the second seal. What kind of sale, how much fish, what with the prices like . 400 boxes, prices were good probably because of the type of weather weve had, there hasnt been much fish so the price is good. Just down the coast from fraserburgh is peterhead, one of europes used fishing ports. Harvest hope is about to set sail on a 10 day trip far out into the north atlantic on the hunt for cod and haddock. Come aboard its a big trip. 0ur bar offshore are you going . We could be going as high as 300 miles west. Its out in the atlantic stop how many days is that . Hopefully a ease but no more than ten days, keep quality. And you need to go that far to find the best fish stocks . Yes, its lovely haddock but it keeps us out of the north sea, reduces the effort in the north sea and because the cod quota has been cut this year, we have less time to spend in the north sea. The amount of fish skipperjames stephen can catch is controlled by quota and under the eu system, 60 of the quotable fish caught in uk waters belongs to non british fishermen. Caught in uk waters belongs to nonbritish fishermen. James, where are we going now. Down into the accommodation. I want to see this because i want to get a sense of how you guys lived when you are on a 10 day trip. Youve got to get used to the stairs. Its easy for me. Are you ready to go on here . Lets have a look at one of the cabins. So this is it, sleeping quarters. Sleeping quarters for the next ten days, 8 10 days. Well, lets be honest, its cramped. Well, it is what it is. On day nine and ten, i getting pretty fed up being in here was to well, i am in my own ways. James, i know youve been in the fishing business a long time. What does this phrase that so many fishing people echo from borisjohnson that so many fishing people echo from Boris Johnson of that so many fishing people echo from borisjohnson of taking back control, what does it mean to you as a fisherman . To me, taking back control is more important than taking back quota. The fishing stocks are moving further to the north, there is more and more effort now going into the uk basin. I would say at this 50 increase in the last five years and with have to manage and control that effort or i think we will see the finish of our industry. So what, your contention is that 65 or so of fish in uk waters that are currently taken by european, eu fishermen, all of that should go to the british, that there should go to the british, that there should be no european fishing in british waters . Ive never said that, i dont think that would be correct. They have a right and an entitlement to also fish in our waters that are fair, equitable share. We were better injustice in 1972 when ted heath took us into the European Union, we were sold down the river. All we are asking or i am asking is that injustice is reversed. What representsjustice . Id like to see a bigger share of the stock. How much . We only take about 35 . Id at least like to see that doubled. If you go to norway, they ta ke 85 doubled. If you go to norway, they take 85 of the stocks in their water. Iceland, 90 . But hang on a minute, james. If you did that, if you doubled the amount of the proportion of the fish in uk waters that was taken by uk fishermen, you would be destroying the livelihoods of many french, belgian, dutch and other european fishermen. The europeans arent going to tolerate that. I dont care. Take a look at round this coast. There is a action, and in action of the industry. They used to be 450 boats at least from the north east corner. Now there are only over 100 so we have seen coastal communities decimated, disappear, all we are asking is that we get some of it back. When it comes down to this negotiation, what is your message to the french, for example . The french christian minister said the other day that u nless minister said the other day that unless the status quo is maintained and access for french and other european fishermen is guaranteed in uk waters, on pretty much the basis it is today, if thats not the case, then not a kilo of british fish will be sold in france. What do you say to him . Well, not a french boat will fish in uk waters or a kilo of fish here. Simple, titfortat. That sounds like open economic war on the sea. So be it. Deep sea fishing is a tough business. A couple of days after leaving peterhead, james sent me these images of a steep swell whipped up by gale force winds. Still, at least he had found plenty of fish. Prime minister Boris Johnson went to peterhead to sell his vision of a rosy post brexit future albritton s fishermen, liberated from russells control. But there are plenty of people in the in the seafood business you dont share his optimism. Denholm is a family owned Fish Processing business. To see the production line, you have to be kitted out. Procedure. Right. So im going to have to have both the coat and the boots. Yes. Ok. But youll get a hairnet burst over there. What size of boots are you . I am 11. Hows that . Am i going to be better now . Lovely, just gorgeous. Great. I am now ready for anything inside this plant. This plant specialises in exporting mackerel and herring. More than 80 of their production is exported into the eu. The workers here are eu citizens from eastern europe. Roman, for example, was a trained lawyer from europe. Roman, for example, was a trained lawyerfrom latvia. He came to peterhead because he could earn more for letting fish. To peterhead because he could earn more for letting fishlj to peterhead because he could earn more for letting fish. Ijust decided to find a job abroad and i came here and found a job in fishing factory. And you obviously quite like it because youve stayed here for a long time. Yes, i am staying here for 12 years already. I took mortgage, i bought my own flat to live and im absolutely satisfied with my life. Brexit means the supply line of cheap labour from the eu will be cut off. Worse, if the eu imposes tariffs and the new customs regime on uk seafood exports, this place is in big trouble. We speak at a time when the fishing industry is absolutely at the top of the political agenda because of where we are in terms of brexit and negotiating a trade deal. Do you regard this as a time of regret or opportunity for what you do . Well, i would like to, i was hoping there would like to, i was hoping there would be opportunity but the concerns we have obviously, i know deal brexit would be devastating for our industry because the export business is a major part of it. Do you mean no trade deal where britain walks away at the end of this year on wto terms without any preferential trade arrangements at all . That does not bear thinking about. Why. Well, we depend on the export market. The eu was a major exporter customer and if we go into wto rules with supplies about fish, will be uncompetitive. So if the current stand off between the British Government and the europeans in terms of the fishing industry of the future continues, you are going to be looking at a situation where tariffs, taxes are put on your mac will as you sell it into europe. How do you feel about that . It would destroy our industry because if there are tariffs applied, we will have trouble getting raw material because we will not be able to feed ourfishermen the because we will not be able to feed our fishermen the market rate because we will have to take into account a tariff when we seal the fish which makes us uncompetitive. So britains fishermen are talking top to europe while the processes are full of foreboding. Its a conflict of interest which the eu can exploit. This village on the coast of france is separated from england byjust coast of france is separated from england by just 20 coast of france is separated from england byjust 20 miles of water but exit is creating a different sort of distance. There are 700 dishman in this town. Some work on huge deep sea trawlers but most are on small family owned boats which rely on eu guaranteed access to uk waters. Bonjour. Gitan heads out on the Adele Camille for lobster pots. His annual quota of turbot and shellfish adds up to more than 30 tons. Tiny in terms of commercial fishing but an entire livelihood for him and his crew. French fishermen have a track record when it comes to direct action. Back in 2018, they attacked the dish boats in the channel in a dispute over scholarships. The uk scallops. The uk is deploying more Fisheries Protection vessels in anticipation of a new wave of french angen anticipation of a new wave of french anger. But in boulogne sur mer, there are other ways the french can apply pressure on britains wishing industry. To understand the economy of boulogne, you need to get away from the port and the fishing boats and drive into this sprawling Industrial Zone because what boulogne has actually done is turn itself into the most important Fish Processing and Distribution Centre in all of europe. This seafood Logistics Centre sends out 500 tons of fish every day to 22 countries. So this Distribution Centre. The difference is that this area is totally devoted to seafood. As the boss showed me truck loads of british seafood passthrough here every day. This has to be a high speed 24 7 operation. But if the eu does not get a deal it likes on fishing, britains seafood exports could face major delays. People working in the fish industry are very concerned about brexit, especially if it is a ha rd about brexit, especially if it is a hard brexit because it will be a problem for everyone. I dont think anyone sees it as an opportunity. It has a lot more constraints and it will be very difficult. We have a very small shelf life so we need to be very quick and if we lose two or three hours at the vetting service, because of new rules and new procedures . If the goods miss the departure, the next departure is one day later. So using british seafood and importing it will be much less attractive . 0bviously, yes. The price would be very expensive as well with these controls result for a small load, it will be over a euro a small load, it will be over a euro a kilo extra and that makes the products and attractive financially. On attractive financially. Right now, the uk and the eu are indulging in high stakes brinkmanship overfishing and the french seem to think they hold powerful cards. We are ina think they hold powerful cards. We are in a tough negotiation and, yes, fishing is the first dossier on the table. And fortunately, it is not possible, you know, for the french to give up like that. For two reasons. Yes, the fishermen, but we know what the reaction will be, what will they do . They will blockade the port. Probably in calais and that will affect the other side of the industry. All the goods, all the rest of the trade that crosses the channel the year will be affected if a couple of boats are blocking ports of calais. This is insane. Are you telling me that the french are prepared to countenance blocking not just the fishing industry in the uk but also blocking trade across the channel, all in the interest of a fishing industry in france that represents a tiny proportion of your gdp. It is symbols. And we know borisjohnson is also playing on symbols on both sides. So let us see. That is what we all say, that is what the regional president and president macron say. Is he bluffing . Are you french, ultimately bluffing . Are you french, ultimately bluffing on this fishing matter . U nfortu nately, we bluffing on this fishing matter . Unfortunately, we are not. Fishing isa unfortunately, we are not. Fishing is a key obstacle to post exit relations between britain and europe, not because of economics, it makes just a tiny contribution to both economies. But because of politics. Symbolism and emotion make compromise difficult. The European Union has said that essentially the status quo as it currently exists must be maintained if britain is to continue to have preferential access in terms of trade to the eu market. That is the reality that this government is ultimately going to have to recognise. You have summed it up. Why is it in anyway fare 80 of the cold from the channel is called by french fishermen . These are shared waters and also we have territorial limits. We need the fish back. Seriously, as we do a trade deal we cannot tell the germans we will put in extra tariff on the car because you want to bring in 40 of german cars 40 of sales in this country a german cars. The eu will not want anything else taken out of trade talks and dealt with in a special way so they cannot have fish donein special way so they cannot have fish done ina special way so they cannot have fish done in a special way either. Let us be specific. How much fish do you think the eu can legitimately claim to get after the brexit negotiations are finished . You said it is currently about 60 of the fishing uk waters that they get. What do you think the number should be in the future . What to do is to look at previous rights that were had before eu membership and then negotiation with the eu. Give me a ballpark figure. The europeans want to know how serious you are being. We are serious but we will not give. When i buy something will i give you my price . No. We will take back control of our waters and then we will negotiate with the eu on a historic basis. Taking back control, referring to his story, none of that is very helpful. The secretary of state for Environment Food and agriculture, george eustis, said the other day that there will indeed be reduced access. So he is already telling the europeans you will have to a cce pt telling the europeans you will have to accept a much thinner slice of the pie. The only question is how thin. He will say that we will take back, i suspect in negotiations, all of ourfish, back, i suspect in negotiations, all of our fish, right . Back, i suspect in negotiations, all of ourfish, right . And then back, i suspect in negotiations, all of our fish, right . And then we will sit down and look at what the historic rights they may claim and doa historic rights they may claim and do a negotiation. That is absurd to say that we have the right to fish all the fish, we have neither the fleet size nor the manpower nor the Processing Capacity to handle that level of fish. It is absurd and the europeans know that. What needs to be done, and i will repeat this time and time again, is to take control of those waters back. 0nce and time again, is to take control of those waters back. Once we have the fish and have the quota then we look at what we can fish, what they can claim historically is a right to fish and then we sit down and negotiate. There will have to be a negotiation. Norway negotiates, everybody does. But what is fundamental is that there will be and there must be more fish for our fishermen because we have not got anywhere near the share of fish that we should have from our waters at the moment. The fact that we need to have our rights back and then negotiate as this independent coastal state is absolutely key and thatis coastal state is absolutely key and that is what is the select committee, parliament and we are absolutely determined to do. Committee, parliament and we are absolutely determined to dam committee, parliament and we are absolutely determined to do. It is easy to grandstand but you must be aware that there is grandstanding on the other side. President Emmanuel Macron has made clear that he wants the status quo to be maintained. French fishermen to have the right to fish as they do and if that deal cannot done he says there will be no wider trade agreement and if that is the case, many industrial sectors in the case, many industrial sectors in the uk, more important than fishing, will suffer. So the really with the europeans. Then there will always be grandstanding on both sides. Isnt it time for you to end the grandstanding . It time for you to end the grandstanding . No it is not when you have the french president thinking he can walk all over our waters, or swim all over them. He cannot do that. In the french will be need to face down all european states and i have ten years in the european parliament, allstate, if any state will be difficult it will be france and we need to stand up to france because we will do a deal with them that they cannot do take to us. This is the whole idea of leaving the eu. Todays patch will be on spanish plates tomorrow. But one year from now, who knows . Fishing has become a brexit litmus test. The fishermen are about to find out what taking back control really means. We have some good weather on the way. Monday is expected to be a sunny day across much of the country after what has been a bit of a changeable weekend for some of us and the weather front is moving away towards the east, a big gap in the clouds here and this is where our area of High Pressure is coming from and that high is building in from the south west clearing the skies across the uk from monday. But there is low pressure out there in the atlantic and it will bring rain later on monday. To North Western parts of the country. This is what looks in the short term. You can see where the air frost is, where the blue colours are, most major towns and cities are just around freezing but certainly out in the countryside a frost. First thing on monday, apart from a few areas it will start will start off sunny. Remember the frost then in the north west of the uk and come the afternoon it will cloud over and the wind will strengthen and we expect rain in Northern Ireland and western scotland. Glasgow is in for some rainfall by the middle of the afternoon. This is the Weather Forecast for tuesday building in right now will slip away towards the south and east and allow for some of these weather fronts to make inroads so that means that after a beautiful and sunny start to the week on monday, tuesday is going to turn a little more cloudy and you can see that cloud streaming in on a south westerly wind and on top of that we have yet more rain for Northern Ireland and also west scotland. But with south westerly wind also comes mild air so you can see the temperatures there are widely into the mid teens across england and through the course of tuesday night and into wednesday, pretty much the same. The weather fronts that are sliding in on these south westerlies keeps bringing mild air to the south of the country, a bit of cloud around and even some rain at times but across northern parts of the uk, a different source of those winds coming in, source of wind direction, coming in from the north atlantic so it will be colder there, eight degrees in glasgow but 16 in london, remember it with a south westerlies. That is the middle of the week. Thursday and friday, a bit of a hiccup in the weather and we expect some weather fronts to develop across southern areas in the rain could turn heavy by friday, temporarily, across the south and you can see the weather going downhill in london. A beautiful monday and then warms up by friday and some rain in london and cardiff but it should dry out once again on the weekend. Im mariko 0i in singapore, the headlines drastic action from the Us Federal Reserve to tackle coronavirus it cuts Interest Rates near zero and announced co ordinated action with other central banks. As the death tolljumps in france, italy and spain, we have a report from madrid, on the huge pressures on hospitals and medical workers. Translation you go home and you cannot kiss your child or your husband or get too close, you cannot talk to yourfriend. Im kasia madera in london. Also in the programme south korea reports fewer than 100 new coronavirus cases for the first time in 3 weeks